The beaches of Namibia have been filled with thousands of seal fetuses. The problem was first detected in August, when observers began to see an unusual number of abortions and prematurely killed pups on the beaches of Pelican Point. Current estimates indicate about 5,000 have died in Pelican Point alone, although the precise reasons are still unknown.

Tyuleniy Island, also known as the ‘Island of the Seals,’ is located in the Sea of Okhotsk and is an important breeding ground for northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus). More than 300 northern fur seals and Steller sea lions have been found dead in a mystery mass die-off on a small, uninhabited island in Siberia.

Around 60 ice seals have been reported dead across northern and western Alaska this month. The cause of the strandings and deaths is not known.

Testing confirmed widespread exposure of saxitoxin in marine mammals and other wildlife. In the study, researchers collected and analyzed data from 10 dead northern fur seals and hundreds of dead, mostly benthic, fish that washed ashore on a popular beachcombing beach on St. Paul Island in August 2024.

NOAA Fisheries working with partners to determine the causes of death, and assess impacts.